I just returned from the July 8 sailing on the Elation. Overall the cruise
was great. The ship is amazingly very clean. The cruise director, Mark
Price is awesome!!
I traveled in from Newark NJ and used the Carnival Air/Sea program. I
arrived at the pier at about 12:05 and was on the ship by 12:40. Apparently
I beat the rush. Note - there are 2 sides to the pier one for air
passengers and one for car passengers (this side was packed). Overall
Embarkation was no problem.
The ship set sail at about 4:30 - be sure to be at the front of the ship
for sail away - awesome views - be warned though, the Captain sounds the
ships horn as you sail out of the harbor and it is LOD (awesome to)!
Monday day at sea - The Pacific at this location is kind of cloudy and cool
- like 65 degrees, yes in July. However, you can use the indoor
Jacuzzi/whirlpool located in the gym area to warm up. They also have an
excellent sauna/steam room.
Tuesday another fun day at sea - warmer today. During the days at sea
there are many on board activities going on ranging from pool games, to
Bingo, to casino fun, to just simply relaxing.
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Wednesday - Puerto Vallarta. Here I took the Beach Party Tour. This was
great! They took us to a first class resort - Paradise Village where you
had full access to all the facilities - pool, nice beach, lounges, etc� In
the afternoon I went to Krystal Village Resort - it costs $6 to get in and
is a short walk from the pier (This is not a Carnival Tour, you just show
proof that you are from the ship and pay the entrance fee) This to was a
first class resort. If you like swimming pools go here the pool is huge and
awesome - It ranges from at spots 2� (yes inches) to 10' deep. In the 2�
area you can lay down in the water and work on your tan - real nice. The
beach here is nice to.
Thursday we were in Mazaltan. Here I took the Stone Island Tour. This was
very good nice beach, good size waves. If you like to shop, however, do not
take this tour, as there is no shopping. Prepare yourself, as Mazaltan is
very primitive, though it is still very nice and hot 95 degrees.
Friday was Cabo San Luca. I took the Snorkeling Expedition Tour, which
overall was ok because: 1) the water was cold; 2) the water was very choppy.
However, it was still cool as we saw lots of colorful fish. Be care in
Cabo, stay with the Carnival Tours. About 20 people went out on a water
taxi (not Carnival operated) and the driver of the boat went to close to the
Arches and an 8' wave overturned the small boat - 3 died - 7 went to the
hospital - there we believe were no lifejackets. If you go out on the water
wear a life jacket - it is choppy. As the ship departs Cabo, the Captain
sounded the horn several times - be sure to be at the front of the ship if
you want to hear it LOUD!
Saturday - A day at sea. Today it was cloudy and cold like 60 degrees. I
heard that it is normally quite cool on Saturday returning to Los Angeles.
As you can image the gym area, steam room/sauna were quite crowed.
We arrived back in Los Angeles early at about 7am. Disembarkation was not
to bad. I was off the ship at about 10 - got my luggage and was on the bus
to the airport by 10:30.
The food on the ship was very good both in the restaurants and Lido
buffets. The 24-hour pizzeria was excellent. The only downside if you can
call it that was at dinner in the restaurant, some of the nites it took 1
hour from the time you ordered until the appetizer was served - kind of long
for me.
The cruise was great. I would do it again in a heartbeat. Please feel
free to e-mail me with any questions you may have.
